Batonda and Perry suggested that although culture is an important element of international marketing, it is also a key determinant of the success of entrepreneurial development in Saudi Arabia. Many studies conducted earlier have developed different opinions and definitions of cultural differences and their implication on organizations.
A review of extant literatures provides a wide range of definitions of culture. In this paper culture is defined based on two contexts, the general context and the organizational context. In the general context, culture, according to Adler, is defined as “the integrated pattern of behavior that includes thought, speech, action, and artifacts, and it depends on man’s capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations”. Under the same general context therefore, the national culture reflect the core values and beliefs of individuals and citizens of a particular nationality. These values are formed during childhood and emphasized throughout life.In the organizational context, culture may be defined as “the sum of group’s pr nation’s way of thinking, believing, feeling, and acting” (Krokosz-Krynke, n.d). According to Krokosz-Krynke (n.d), culture as the way of life of a group of people, is also defined as “a complex set of values, beliefs, assumptions, and symbols that define the way which a firm conducts its business”. Alkhafaji, on the other hand, defined culture as the accepted, patterned ad typical ways of living. credit
Zhao, Rauch and Frese (n.d) concluded that “a culture that supports entrepreneurship produces more people with entrepreneurial potential (p.5)” and resulted in more entrepreneurial activity. Their conclusion is based on past researches that have successfully established the relationship between culture and entrepreneurship. Hayton, George and Zahra identified and listed past researches that examined the relationship between dimensions of culture and entrepreneurship. According to them, these studies implied that national culture can either support or hinder entrepreneurial behavior at the individual level.